How does income inequality affect support for populist parties?
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2024-07-11
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en
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A new wave of populist support is present in multiple countries worldwide. This disrupts the political landscape and erodes democratic institutions. What fuels this rise in populism? This paper hypothesizes that the increased concentration of income streams is one of the prominent drivers of populist support. Income inequality leads to decreased trust in political elites, relative deprivation, reduced social cohesion, and increased polarization. Populist alternatives provide the electorate the opportunity to overthrow the 'corrupt' status quo. A novel approach is taken by hypothesizing that the relationship between income inequality and populist support is influenced by economic uncertainty. Examining a sample containing twenty-five countries over forty years, this paper confirms evidence of a relationship between income inequality and populist voting. Furthermore, the paper shows that uncertainty shocks significantly mediate the relationship between income inequality and populist vote shares.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen